


Aftermath

by LtTanyaBoone



Category: Pan Am
Genre: Episode Tag, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-26
Updated: 2012-07-26
Packaged: 2017-11-15 08:36:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/525345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LtTanyaBoone/pseuds/LtTanyaBoone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After making it back to Miami, Ted and Colette have a conversation at the hotel bar.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aftermath

**Disclaimers:** Pan Am, the rights to the show and its characters do not belong to me. No money was made by this.  
 **Spoilers:** 1x08 Unscheduled Departure  
 **Pairing:** none, Colette Valois/Ted Vanderway friendship

* * *

Walking into the hotel bar, Ted looked around and blinked in surprise at the woman sitting in the corner by herself. He ordered himself a whiskey and went over to her.

“This seat taken?” he asked, making Colette jump slightly as she looked up from the glass she had been staring into.

“No.” she shook her head, the smile coming to her face easily. Ted sat down and watched her, noticing how the shadows lingered in her eyes and flashing back to the moment on the plane, when she had left the cockpit to help get the cabin ready for landing. The second when she had straightened, squared her shoulders and started smiling again. The Pan Am smile.

“Where’s the boy wonder?” Ted asked, looking around. Colette frowned lightly at him.

“Dean? He’s probably upstairs.” she shrugged, taking a sip of her drink. Ted did the same, keeping his eye on her.

“And the others?”

“Out.” Colette answered curtly, the hold on her glass tightening briefly.

“Even Kate?” the co-pilot pushed. Colette’s dark eyes shot up from the glass and met his for a brief moment before they darted away again.

“Maybe. I don’t know.” the French woman said, bracing her elbows on the table as she crossed her arms. “I wanted to be alone.” she muttered, her voice barely audible over the loud conversations in the bar. Ted nodded, but made no move to leave her alone. Instead, he drank a few more sips of his whiskey, welcoming the burn of the alcohol as it went down his throat.

“It’s okay to be scared.” he suddenly said. Colette looked at him again, and he almost fell off his chair at the look on her face, one of complete terror. But that was gone as fast as it had appeared and the Pan Am mask was put firmly into place again. The former Navy aviator swallowed thickly. Oh yeah, she had been terrified in the jungle. And so had he.

“I am fine.” Colette told him, her smile widening briefly as she put some effort into convincing him.

“Really?” Ted grinned, leaning back in his chair, and he glimpsed a flash of relief when she believed him to buy the lie. “Cause that shaking hand of yours says otherwise.” the man added, pointing at the glass that was halfway up to her mouth. Colette froze before setting the glass down with force, pulling her hands under the table and rubbing them on her thighs. Ted watched her, trying to remember the first time he had been shot at, the first time he had been afraid of being killed, and the aftermath of that. What his CO had said to snap him out of his funk…

“I almost pissed my pants in Haiti.” he admitted, feeling the heat creep up in his face at the humiliation. “Damn Papa Doc.” he muttered, taking a gulp of his drink. Colette swallowed thickly, watching him carefully, waiting. Ted clicked his tongue, biting his lip before he shook his head. “That girl, she was just… so calm. You know?”

“I imagine seeing your family get killed, watching other people die for weeks, it becomes something normal, almost.” Colette muttered, slowly turning her glass on the coaster.

“Not for us, though.” Ted shook his head, tilting his head at her. “I have ears, you know.” he told her, making Colette frown at him. “I heard the way you were pleading for her when we were standing outside that pathetic excuse of a hospital.”

Colette’s eyes darted away from him again and she looked around the bar, drawing a shaky breath.

“And I heard the fear when you said my name as they shot at us.”

This time, he saw her close her eyes, her hands grabbing the edge of the table so hard her knuckles turned white. Ted gave a dry chuckle, shaking his head.

“You saved my life.” Colette suddenly muttered, looking at him again, her dark eyes wide. Ted snorted.

“Didn’t have much of a choice. Dean would’ve killed me if I came back without you.” he joked, sobering.

“Maybe.” she inclined her head, a tiny smile tugging at the corners of her lips. “Good night, Ted.” she said, standing. He watched her collect her purse and take a step towards the exit.

“Pink elephants.” he called after her, making Colette turn around.

“Excuse me?” she frowned at him. Ted looked up at her, swallowing.

“When you go to bed tonight, tell yourself you won’t dream of pink elephants. Repeat it in your head until you fall asleep.”

Colette froze before she swallowed, giving him a silent nod before she turned around and left the bar. Ted stared after her before shaking his head, downing the remaining whiskey before he got up to get himself a new one. He just hoped that pink elephants would work better for her than they had for him.

_fin._


End file.
